While on-campus speakers on Library Mall may capture the attention of a handful of people at a time, one UW-Madison student is making his voice heard throughout the entire Madison-area community.
Casey Hoff, a senior majoring in marketing, is the host of \New Ground,"" a daily radio show on Madison's AM 1670, WTDY radio.
Hoff is one of the up-and-coming hosts on the station who, at only 22, is one of the youngest daily talk show hosts in the nation, according to WTDY morning host Sly.
""I know in a market this size that there aren't any other 22-year-olds doing talk radio,"" Sly said.
""He definitely brings a unique perspective,"" said afternoon host Shawn Prebil. ""He's very, very precise when it comes to his type of perspective and being his youthful age and still being able to show ... that he knows what he's talking about.""
Hoff's show, which airs daily from 9 to 11 a.m., serves as Hoff's opportunity to discuss issues he feels most passionately about, most notably economics and the relationship between religion and politics.
""I care a lot about working people in this country,"" said Hoff, a self-proclaimed progressive capitalist. ""I definitely believe in the free market and capitalism, but there have to be certain restrictions to protect workers abroad ... and here in America.""
One of the things that makes Hoff an interesting host, according to Sly, is that he is both a left-leaning Democrat and a practicing Catholic.
Hoff said that though he follows his religion, he still maintains what he refers to as a ""progressive philosophy,"" which includes the support of legal abortion and same-sex marriage.
Hoff began his work at WTDY in January of 2003, when he served as an intern. He then began subbing in for traffic reporters, full-time hosts and, eventually, earned his own weekend show called ""Ground Zero.""
""I couldn't believe how quickly he caught on,"" Sly said.
The rest of the programming staff at WTDY recognized Hoff's talents as well, and soon Hoff had his own daily talk show.
""He has a way of getting people revved up on the phone without being mean,"" Sly said.
Hoff said he hopes to make talk radio a career, a good choice according to Sly.
""I'm going to be nice to him,"" he said, ""because [one day] he might be my boss.\
